Zelsys ripped the cleaver from its back, raising it in preparation to butcher the thing as it thrashed helpless on the ground.

The moment her blade left the beast’s back, its flesh pulled itself back together and even its spine reattached, putrid black blood congealing instantaneously within the hole to compensate for lost mass. Almost instantly it was back on its feet, the only things that stopped it from instantly lashing out at Zelsys being its own size and a well-timed third gunshot to its cranium from Spliteye’s rifle. The shock was enough to slow it down, but it wasn’t enough to drag its attention away from the one who had severed its spine.

It turned around, lashing out at her with its maw gaping like the gates of hell themselves. Zelsys eagerly rammed her open left hand down its throat, grabbing its tongue at the root with confidence that its fangs were too far apart to even nick her flesh. Its jaws slammed shut much like those of a bear trap, met by the hard steel of her gun’s barrel at the top and the trigger lever on the bottom.

She took a deep breath of the fetid air, a manic grin stretching across her face in proportion to the exhilaration coursing through her body. With a long exhalation of Fog she swung the cleaver upward one-handed. Flesh split like mud and bones like twigs underneath its razor-sharp edge and tremendous momentum, and the bear-thing’s left foreleg was gone, black blood gushing from the stump. Wherever its blood landed, the plants withered.

It thrashed, pushing and pulling, nearly ripping Zelsys off her feet, but she just laughed and guided the blade towards its neck on the downswing, still holding onto the thing’s tongue like it was a giant fish. A disgusting squelch. She let go of the handle and switched her grip to the hilt, using it as a push bar in an attempt to engage the saw-action and sever the beast’s head. It wouldn’t budge.

Zelsys took a breath, and pushed again as she exhaled a rope of Fog. Crunch. The bear’s thrashing grew weaker, its ability to pull itself back together entirely countered by the cleaver’s presence as a physical barrier. Yet, despite the fact its cervical spine had been severed, it continued to move.

With heavy, Fog-filled breaths she sawed violently at the beast’s neck, confident that the next push would leave its head dangling in her grasp. Sensing its impending death the beast threw itself at the transport as she pulled, dislodging the cleaver and slamming her into the hull. Pain shot through her body from the impact, and she felt her consciousness slip as she fell into a bed of lentil plants.

It was only a few seconds before she woke and leapt to her feet, the sudden waking breath fueling a rising handspring. The bear’s head had reattached itself, the wound sealed shut by a huge plug of congealed blood. The creature just wouldn't die.